Step 2: If you’ve got squirt guns, get them filled. If you’ve got hoses, get the nozzles put on.

When the guests arrive:

Step 1: Choose two children to play first.

Step 2: Have each child stand in front of their goal, at opposite ends of the yard.

Step 3: Give them the water guns or hoses, and put a beach ball by their feet.

Step 4: When you yell ‘Fire!’ they have to use the guns or hoses to get their ball across the other child’s goal line, while blocking their opponent’s ball from crossing their goal.

Step 5: The child that gets their ball across the opposing goal line is the winner.

Step 6: You can have the next child play the winner, or select two new children to play the next round.

Knights and Dragons

Before the guest arrive:

Step 1: Make two lines in the grass that are about 20 feet apart. This is your moat.

When the guests arrive:

Step 1: Choose one child to be the dragon. All the other boys are knights.

Step 2: Have the dragon stand in the middle of the moat. The knights should stand behind one of the two lines. Be sure to have all the knights behind the same line.

Step 3: To begin play, the dragon yells. ‘Try and cross!’ All the knights must try and run past the dragon to the other side, without being tagged.

Step 4: Any knight that is tagged becomes part of the dragon’s tail, and must hold hands with the dragon, or any other captured knights. Once part of the tail, the captured knights must help to tag the knights that are still free.

Step 5: The knight that is caught last is the winner, and gets to be the dragon in the next round.

Pop Goes the Planet

Things you’ll need:

One balloon for each guestTwo magnifying glassesTape

Before the guests arrive:

Step 1: Tape several balloons to a fence or wall outside. They should be about 1-2 inches apart, and should be in the sun at the time of the party.

When the guests arrive:

Step 1: Give two children each a magnifying glass.

Step 2: Show them how to position the magnifying glass to catch the sun’s rays, which will warm a spot on the balloon, and make them pop.

Step 3: A bright spot will appear on the balloons right before they pop.

Step 4: The first person to pop his balloon wins. Give the winner a small prize, and let another child play. Continue to play until each child has had a chance to pop a balloon.

Three Musketeers Race

Before the guests arrive:

Step 1: Mark two lines on the ground, about 20 feet apart.

When the guests arrive:

Step 1: Divide the guests into teams of three.

Step 2: Have the members of each team line up on the starting line with their backs to each other, in a triangle, with their elbows locked.

Step 3: Once all the teams are ready, yell ‘One for all and all for one!’

Step 4: The teams have to run to the second line, turn around, and run back; keeping their arms linked the entire time.

Step 5: If a team comes unlinked, they must go back to the starting line and start over.